Operation Pickles
by Hikari loves Kurama
Summary: Zim is building a new weapon- a proton laser (whatever the heck that is) Can Dib, with the help of Tera and the rest of his fanclub, stop Zim once and for all? Or will tera fall for Gir and betray Dib? Who does she love more, Dib, or Gir...?
1. Ally

This is my first Invader Zim story, so be nice. Flames will be used to power my death beam, so I can aid in the destruction of earth! Mwahahaha!   
  
Zim: Right on! So be warned, stink worms!  
  
Gir: I wanna taco…  
  
If you do the disclaimer, then you can have a Taco.  
  
Gir: With mayonnaise?  
  
Uh, sure…  
  
Gir: Yay! Hikari does not own Invader Zim, some dude does. Um, she doesn't own the YMCA or any other stuff she puts in here, except the author's notes and stuff. Now, TACO!!!!  
  
Here you go, cute little SIR robot!  
  
Gir: Yippee! Taco for me! Taco for me!  
  
Zim: Ugh! Disgusting robot!  
  
Gir: *Smiles, mayonnaise and who-knows-what-else dripping down his face* yum!  
  
Zim: Oh, get on with the story.  
  
Okay then, Zim….  
  
____Operation Pickles_____   
  
The day dawned over the small town, the sun peeking over the multicolored roofs of the buildings. It was a chilly, silent morning, with a thick fog making proper visibility impossible. The weather man had said it would be below fifty the night before, so the inhabitants did not dare leave their domiciles without a coat. Our story begins in a rather secluded house, it's lawn decorated with various lawn gnomes. The walk that led up to the house was crooked, due to a hasty creation. Within the house lived a small, green child who suffered from skin conditions, one of the horrors of his case was that he had no ears. As the door opened, his dog bolted out, only to be jerked back by the short length of leash in which his master held. The small dog was of a dull green color, his ears black. He was called "Gir" by his master, who proceeded to assist the small dog in standing again. This dog was of a special breed, and he could both walk on his hind legs, and speak in English. He usually did not make any sense what so ever, but that is beside the point.   
  
  
  
"Gir, keep out a sharp eye for that… Dib beast." The boy informed his pet, his tone lowered so as not to alarm the neighbors. "We do not want any trouble now, when we are so close to victory! Just one more day, and the proton beam will be charged up enough to destroy all the satellites, and DOOM this filthy planet!"  
  
  
  
"Doom!" Echoed the dog, childish innocence in his words. "I like doom, when we gonna doom peoples?"  
  
  
  
Zim's eyes narrowed, a fiendish grin spreading acrossed his face. "Soon, Gir, soon…"  
  
Without warning, a second child leapt up from his hiding place behind a particularly tall gnome. His black hair was slicked back into an odd shape, just like the green child's. He let out a cry of triumph, punching his fist into the air, "Aha! I know all about your evil plan now, Zim, Irken Invader! And guess what, I'm gonna stop you!" The crazy boy began to laugh hysterically, then ran from the yard. "I'll stop you, Zim!"  
  
  
  
"Fool Dib." Zim chuckled, giving the leash a tug. "Come on, Gir. We can still get to the store before Skool." He began to walk to the end of his yard, the small dog following him, squeaks accompanying Gir's every step.  
  
  
  
These two were not your average boy and dog, as you may have guessed. The boy called Zim was actually, as the crazy boy had said, an Irken Invader, sent to Earth to conquer it. The reason he was sent to such a pathetic planet was his lack of intelligence and his abundance of over-enthusiasm. He had be given an assistant, a Sir unit, one of the elite forms of robot assistants. This one, however, had malfunctioned, and it had been tossed away. They gave it a brain composed of a marble, a paper clip, and some string, and dubbed it "a special unit". Zim, being the rather foolish, crazed Irk he was, had accepted it, all smiles. At this very moment, acrossed the galaxy, the Tallest, the leaders of the Irks, were laughing at him. Zim, however, was oblivious to all this, and firmly believed he was their favorite invader, and that he would not fail.   
  
  
  
And so the "boy" and his "dog" headed down the dreary sidewalk, on their way to the store to by components for the proton beam. Upon reaching the store, Gir uttered a high-pitched, "Woo! Brainfreezy!" As he gazed at a poster taped to the door, a large cup of icy liquid pictured on it. Zim looked disgusted, but when he and his SIR unit left the store, the little, cheery robot held a cup of the brown ice slush. He sucked on it convulsively, his loud slurping further irritating the Invader.   
  
  
  
"Gir, is that incessant slurping really necessary?!" Snarled the green boy with a scowl.   
  
  
  
"Oh, I don't know." Gir said, with emphasis on the Os. He tilted his cute little head to the side in a comical way, "…Purple?"  
  
  
  
"No, Gir, not purple! Bad! Slurping is BAD." Zim chided sharply, jerking the leash in anger at his slow stride and disgusting sound effects.   
  
  
  
The robot's eyes filled with tears, and he began to sob. "I sorry, master!" He shrieked, falling to his knees and burying his face in his paws. His sobs grew louder as he beat his head on the pavement, screws and bolts falling from his head and clattering to the ground. The Brainfreezy fell to the sidewalk beside him, the sludge oozing out, making bubbly sounds. "I sorry! SORRY!"  
  
"Okay, okay, Gir!" Zim watched the humans that had crowded around to watch hysterical dog, out the of the corner of his purple eyes, his voice urgent. "It's okay, I don't care! Slurp all you want! Come on, we have to go, now!"  
  
  
  
The dog lifted his tear-stained face to his master, and blinked his cute, puppy eyes. "Okay!" He said, instantly back to his bundle-of-cheer self. "Where my Brainfreezy?" He looked to the side, and upon finding his drink spilled all over the pavement. He erupted into sobbing again, "No! My freezy! I need my freezy!"   
  
* * *   
  
Dib was not the average boy either. No, he was not an alien, nor did he have a robot with mental issues. Dib had been obsessed with the super natural since his birth, and the fact that his father was a crazed scientist did not help. His sister, a creepy girl by the name of Gaz, would tell anyone who would listen that her brother was psycho. And, perhaps he was. But he was the only one who stood between Zim, and the stink-filth planet of Earth. Oh, lucky us. Now, on this day, Dib had gotten up at five am to pursue his favorite past time: spying on Zim. By the time this crazed boy stumbled back to his house, his sister and father were waiting by the car, anxious to leave. Or, Gaz was screaming madly in protest as her father shoved her into van, eager to get to some sort of science-nut seminar. Dib shook his head as he lifted himself into the backseat beside his raging sister, a slight droop to his smile. "Another day, another Gaz tantrum, another Zim plot to take over the world. I love life…" He said to himself, just loud enough for his sister to hear. She gave him a glare, death shining in her eyes.   
  
  
  
"Talking to yourself again, Dib?" She hissed, her fingers twitching at her sides. She was not allowed to bring her game system to Skool, and this peeved her beyond words.   
  
  
  
"Yeah," Dib said absently, his eyes focus on the scenery that flew passed the window.   
  
"Hey Gaz, if the burden of the world's fate was in your hands, what would you do?"  
  
  
  
Gaz blinked. "You are a freak, aren't you?" She crossed her short arms acrossed her chest and fell into a moody silence, uttering foul things under her breath.   
  
Dib smiled again as the passed the Cumberland Farms gas station, and he spotted his arch nemesis and Gir, his robot dog, standing in the parking lot. Zim was tugging in vain at the dog's leg, trying to pull him away from the sludge puddle, but Gir would not relent his attempt to lap up the remainder of the Brainfreezy. Dib hastily rolled down the window and shouted as they zoomed past, "Having problems, Irken scum?!"  
  
Zim waved a threatening fist at him and screamed a line of insults for all his lungs were worth. "Dib-beast! Earthworm! Stink-pie!"  
  
"Stink pie?" Dib echoed quietly as he sat back against his chair, folding his hands in his lap. "That's a new one."  
  
* * *   
  
A/N: I am not entirely sure of the teacher's name. I believe it is Mrs.Bitters, but if not, you have to remember, Invader Zim hasn't been on in a long time, so, you know. Also, it may take a wile for the title to make sense, so dun bug me about it, okay? You'll find out soon enough what the deal is with the title. Then again, you may find out in this chapter, depending upon me. Also note, Gir is beyond cute! Silly little SIR robot, C'mere! *Cuddles robot* Isn't he so cute? I love him! He and Dib are my favorites! Also, please remember this: my own character is going to be added, and it's me! But her name is Tera, which is not my name. I just like the name, okay? I won't spoil it anymore, so, um, yeah. Read on!  
  
* * *  
  
Zim let his face fall to the book he was reading, his cheek resting on the yellowing paper. He let out a moan of pure boredom, a line of drool trailing from his mouth. The teacher, whom the called the Bat Lady (behind her back, of course) droned on about the war of the pineapple snatchers in the early sixth century. Her hair, an elderly blue, was pulled into a bun at the nape of her neck, adding to her scary appearance, making her look like a vampire-schoolmarm. Her black dress was very vampire-like ,and she swooped about the room, preying on the innocent, worm children. I mean, students.   
  
  
  
"-And then they all went home, and died." She said from her seat behind the intimidating desk, her words little more than hissing. Half of her students were dead-or dying-from boredom. Others, the more timid ones, gawked at her, wide eyed and horrified at her story. Dib was the only one unaffected by her, and he was deeply immersed in a book on proton beams, which he had checked out from the Skool library earlier that morning.   
  
  
  
"Excuse, me, ma'am?" A quiet, skittish sounding voice asked form somewhere in the vicinity of the closed door muttered. The class, whether zoned out or shaking in horror, looked up to see a young girl. Her mouse-brown hair fell to her shoulders, and hazel eyes peeked out from behind thin-rimmed glasses. Freckles dotted her slightly chubby cheeks. She wore a pair of jeans and a bright red Tshirt with a picture of a familiar dog on it; green and black, with a small zipper clearly showing at his neck, his little tongue sticking out, and a caption reading: Hug me! above his head. Her flipflop clad feet made no sound as she took a few short steps over to the desk, her face pale and her smile strained. She held out a note with a trembling hand. "T-This is for you, Mrs.Bitters. I-I'm Tera, your new s-s-student."  
  
  
  
"Very well. Go sit by Dib, the freaky kid over there," The Bat Lady snatched the note from her hand, startling her further. With a soft cry, she ran from the desk and took her seat to the right of Dib. He gave her a friendly smile, which she tried to return, but to no avail.   
  
  
  
"I'm Dib." He said quietly from the corner of his mouth, his eyes on the teacher as she drew a crude diagram of a monkey on the blackboard. "Do you believe in aliens?"  
  
Tera smiled, suddenly feeling very at home. She reached into her bag, pulling out a small, yellow book entitled "Are We Alone?" And proceeded to recline back in her chair, and bury her nose in the book.  
  
Dib shot a look of triumph at Zim, who stuck his tongue out in response. "I think I found myself an ally. Beware, Zim." He muttered to himself, turning back to his book.   
  
* * *   
  
The lunch room. Many a day Dib had feared the coming of lunch, and the teasing that came along with the indigestion. But today he was eager to get to lunch so as to get to know the new girl. Tera had never answered his question verbally, nor had even looked at him for the rest of that morning, but Dib was sure she would aid him in the downfall of Zim. The only problem was her timid nature. The smallest thing frightened her to hysterics, and the last thing he needed was an assistant like, well, Gir. He needed someone he could rely on, someone trustworthy, someone willing to help out earth. Was she the one?  
  
  
  
Did found the girl standing in line, a rather nervous look on her face as she viewed the food. Also know as radioactive sludge from mars. He smiled at her as he approached, lifting a hand in a friendly hello. He joined her in line, grabbing a tray. "So, Tera, good day so far?"  
  
  
  
"I sopose… Look, um, Dib? We can't talk here." Her voice fell to a whisper, her eyes scanning the room. She set her tray on the counter and turned from the line. "Follow me."  
  
She promptly bolted, Dib tossing his tray over his shoulder and following her. He chased her as she left the lunch room, and rushed down the hall, darting between, behind, and under the indignant-looking students that were filing into the cafeteria. She slammed open the double doors, causing sunlight to stream into the dank hallway. Dib stepped outside, and helped her close the door behind them.   
  
* * *  
  
  
  
In one swift movement, Tera sat down on the top step, folding her legs beneath her. Dib sat beside her, letting his legs hang off the step. "My name is not Tera, it's Jessica." She began, her tone heavy as though burdened. "I've been sent by a secret organization to aid you in slowing the Irken Invader's take over. We have reason to believe he is building a proton beam, whatever the heck that is. Myself and three others are here to help you stop this machine, lest Zim use it on earth. I hope I can be of some use to you, Dib."  
  
"Wow! So, I'm not alone?" Dib asked, unable to hide his excitement and enthusiasm.  
  
"You never were." Tera smiled, lifting a hand to brush away a bothersome strand of hair.   
  
"I am only one of hundreds of operatives. We simply are not allowed to aid you directly in your fight. Until now. According to our inside informant, Zim's new plan of attack is his most brilliant yet. If he succeeds, we're doomed." She suppressed the intense urge to sing the doom song.   
  
  
  
"So, what do you have planned as a counter attack?"  
  
"You're the leader, Dib. I'm not to good at plans." Tera murmured, inclining her face to hide her expression. "I'm just here to make sure you stay alive, and to help in any way I can. I couldn't think up a plan if I tried."   
  
Sensing a slight lie there, Dib asked gravely, "What do you think we should do, Tera?"  
  
  
  
"Well.." She bit her lip nervously. "Um, well, it would be a good idea to befriend the enemy's assistant, a sir unit by the name of Gir."  
  
Dib nodded, smiling. "Sounds good to me. Com on, Zim isn't going to be home, lets go to his house now!" He stood abruptly, and after helping her up, he and Tera slipped from the Skool yard, unnoticed by anyone. Or, so they thought.  
  
* * *   
  
Zim stepped out from the shadows beside the door, a smile of pure evil on his green face. "So, the Dib-beast has gotten an ally? Well, I'll destroy them both! Mwahaha!" He doubled over as he cackled, clenching his hands into fists at his sides. Thunder cracked and large droplets of water fell to the ground as it began to storm. Zim hurried into the building, not relishing the thought of burning in the rain. Besides, he must contact Gir before the stink-humans got to his domicile.  
  
* * *   
  
"Yay! Crazy monkey show!" The robot cried happily as he reclined back on the soft couch, his arms behind his head. His glowing eyes watched as a green monkey danced on the screen of the television, slurping the remainder of his replacement Brainfreezy. With a contented burp, he settled himself a bit more comfortably and closed his eyes.   
  
  
  
"…Gir…!" Zim's voice, small and buzzing-like, crackled as a screen slid from a slit in the ceiling, his face appearing on the screen, his face pulled into an angry scowl. "Gir, wake up!" He paused. "…Gir, the piggy wants you!"  
  
  
  
Gir snorted and sat up, his eyes wide. "Piggy?" He asked, his tone childish and almost angelic.   
  
  
  
"You have to prepare yourself, Gir." Zim snapped, the hand that was visible in a fist.   
  
"Dib and another stink-human are coming!"  
  
  
  
Gir clapped his hands, making clanking sounds as metal hit metal. "Yay! More friends for me! I like Dib, he's got a BIG head."  
  
  
  
"No! No, Gir! They're not friends, they're… um…" Zim had to think fast. He had to keep the robot from letting the humans in. But Gir was so quick to befriend anyone who talked to him, if the girl even talked to him, it would be disastrous. But what would make Gir hate them? "They're coming to take away your TV! And to hurt your piggy!"  
  
  
  
Gir held the pink, fluffy doll to his chest. "N-Not piggy…" A solitary tear made it's way down his cheek. He sniffled, cuddling the pig to his face. His naïve little mind could not bear the thought of some one coming to hurt his piggy!   
  
  
  
"They're mean people Gir. You have to capture them and put them in the holding chamber, okay? So we can… punish.. them for trying to hurt piggy." Zim's face cracked into an evil grin as he watched the robot nod bravely, and put a hand to his head in salute, clacking his heels together.  
  
  
  
"Yes sir, master Zim." The robot grinned and hopped of the couch as the screen slid back up into the ceiling. Hastily hiding piggy in the refrigerator, he prepared a trap for the ones who would try to hurt piggy. And he did it with a cheery smile and a tuneless whistle, fairly skipping around the house.   
  
* * *   
  
  
  
Tera hoisted her backpack higher up on her shoulder, and gave Dib a thumbs up. He smiled in response, and opened the gate. Zim's house was only thirty feet away, but the peril that lay between them and the door made it so much longer. Dib held up a hand, halting her. "The lawn gnomes shoot out lasers. Follow me closely, okay?"  
  
  
  
"Wait, Dib. Gir has seen you before, right? I should go in directly to talk to him, keep him busy, while you slip in an spy out his lair underground." Tera suggested.   
  
  
  
"Hey, I thought you said you couldn't think of any plans." Dib smiled and gestured for her to go first.  
  
  
  
Taking a deep breath, Tera readjusted the straps of her bag, and stepped into the yard. Upon noticing her, the nearest gnome fired a ray of light from her eyes, and she had to jump to the side to avoid it. Dib watched her anxiously, but he needn't have worried. She dodged the blasts fairly easily, considering. Her hand strayed to her side, and as she ducked past a third rabid lawn ornament, she whipped out a small laser gun, and fired a series of rapid shots, exploding the dwarf-like thing into smithereens. "Take that, you sorry excuse for a security system!"  
  
  
  
"Hah!" Dib clapped as she hopped onto the doorstep, and then ducked behind bushes to peek at her as she rang the bell.   
  
  
  
"Hello?" Tera called, knocking harder, since the bell seemed to be malfunctioning. The door swung open, revealing a beaming SIR unit. She smiled, and stooped to pat the robot's head.  
  
  
  
"Are you the one who wants to hurt piggy?" Gir asked, his eyes glowing an evil red, his tone unusually jaded. "Because if you are, you gonna be doomed!"  
  
* * *  
  
Did you like that chapter, all you Invader Zim fans? If so, you see the little GO icon in the left hand corner there? Click and tell me so! I need a few Dib fans to fill out the form below (The easiest way to do so is to right click it and paste in onto the review screen thing, then insert your answers) so I can put you in the story.   
  
  
  
Hair color:  
  
Eye color:  
  
  
  
Clothes:  
  
Personality:  
  
  
  
Favorite thing to order at McDonalds:  
  
(Please not, you must have a fairly human name. I cannot accept Zim8980, or anything along those lines, as a name! It has to be ten letters or less, and first names only!)  
  
Please feel free to flame me. As I said before, I will use them for my death laser. I will also use them in my soup, which is good.   
  
Gir: Soup! Soup!  
  
Zim: Silence Gir! We need to be stealthy and avoid being seen.  
  
Gir: *Cries* But, I want soup!  
  
How about a taco?  
  
Gir: TACO!  
  
And please do not use any swears in reviewing. I hate cuss words, and the people who use them. You'll make me VERY mad if you swear, and I'll have to sick Dib on you. The last thing you want is him obsessively spying on you and ruining your plans of world domination!   
  
Zim: Yes, trust me, it's annoying.   
  
Dib: Hey! I thought you were me friend.  
  
Of course I am, I don't think you're annoying, just, well, obsessive.   
  
Dib: Okay, but can I have a taco too?  
  
Gir ate them all. Okay people, I have to go to the store and buy some tacos! If you really liked my story, put me on your favorites! PLZ?! C.Ya! 


	2. Infiltration

Hello there, peoples. This is chapter two of-  
  
Gir: Chapter two! Chapter two! Jumps up and down  
  
As I was saying, this is chapter two-  
  
Gir: Chapter two! Chapter two! Jumps around a little more  
  
Gir, please hush for a moment, okay? I need to tell them this is chapter two of my first Invader Zim story, Operation Pickles. So shush.  
  
Gir: Oooooooooookkkkaaaaaaayyyyyyy.  
  
As I was saying... this is chapter two of my first Invader Zim story, Operation Pickles! Um, why do I have the feeling I said that before? Hm. Aw well! Hey, did you guys like my cliffhanger? I'm not a very cliffhanger-y- person-y-person (I love having such a wide, advanced vocabulary! -). So that might be the only one! Well, not really but.. Don't expect one every chapter! And, thank you lots to my first Dib fan, Maria! I wasn't going to introduce the fans until chapter three, but you get to come in during this chapter! Yay for you! Not only that, but you come in with style. I'm talkin bout- uh, just read to see what I'm talkin bout, kay? Oh, and if you have a favorite IZ quote(s) please send em to me! I also wanna take this chance to say Yo to a certain Gir fan out there, insane Gir Fan! Please, please, please, stop by my house on your way to Orlando, so I can huggle Gir! And say hey to Dib! And slap Zim and tell him to put his focus back on the... Looks to her right, then her left ... The bees. They are the true rulers of the planet! They make us humans think we're the top of the food chain, but they are the smart ones! They put stupid-poison in their honey that we eat, and doom us to stupid stupidity! DOOM US TO STUPID STUPIDITY!!!!! YAY!!!!!  
  
Dib: While Hikari rants in her episode of insanity, I'll do the disclaimer! She does not own the YMCA, which she promises will be in this chapter. It was soposed to be in the last chapter, but she forgot. She does not own us, nor does she own Maria. Maria is property of Keckhs. She has graciously loaned her to Hikari, for Hikari's own, secretive purposes of world domination!  
  
Hey, Dib, you weren't soposed to tell! Hahaha. No, I don't plan to use her to take over the world, though I could... No. I'm trying to save the world! Then again... Quote: "We did it Gir! We saved the earth! Now, lets go destroy it!" These are the wise words of Zim. Perhaps, they are words to live by! Do I sense a sequel, before I'm even done with this story? That would be interesting, me saving the world in this one, then taking it over in the sequel. Or vice-versa. Aw well. I'm done rambling, so on with the story!  
  
Operation Pickles   
  
Mrs.Bitters paced the length of the classroom, her eyes scanning the papers of her students. Every last day of her miserable existence she had to endure the lack of intelligence of her pupils. And she got paid a smaller salary than the Icecream Man did. Sickened by the poorly done assignments, she began to hiss beneath her breath. Oh, how she longed to simply quit! How she yearned to fulfil her dream, what ever it may have been. But now she was forever stuck in the cell, forced to ram information down small children's throats. So she swept about the room, leaning over desks to inspect the worksheets done by her pupils. She was just another normal teacher of the Skool system, and nothing about her was bizarre. At least if you consider her line of work. The only unordinary one in this dank room was the short green child. She knew it, too. She knew he was abnormal. She knew the insane one, Dib, was aware of Zim's strangeness. But Dib was not here. Neither was the new girl. What an odd case that one was. She had seemed to be terrified of breathing.  
  
Zim watched with dull eyes as his teacher slunk around the room, only pausing to snarl a complaint at some random child. He propped his face upon his fist, his elbow resting on the desk. His mind wandered to Gir, and he began to fret. Had the stink-humans gotten to his home yet? Had Gir succeeded in capturing them? Or had Dib, his arch enemy, outsmarted his assistant once again?! This was most likely, owing to the unfortunate fact that Gir was as smart as two paper clips, string, and a marble. Which meant he was smarter than a door-to-door salesman, but less intelligent than a rock. Rocks are very smart, you know.  
  
"Are you the one who wants to hurt piggy?" Gir asked, his eyes glowing an evil red, his tone unusually jaded. "Because if you are, you gonna be doomed!"  
  
Tera blinked, sincerely perplexed. What was her little idol talking about? Tilting her head to the side, she asked him, "Gir, what are you talking about? I have no intentions of hurting piggy...... Is this something Zim told you?"  
  
The reddish glow to the small SIR unit's eyes faded. "You mean you ain't here ta hurt piggy...? Then you my friend!" He promptly wrapped his short arms around her legs and beamed.  
  
"That was close. May I come in, Gir?" Tera cast a glance at Dib as she walked into the house with Gir, who was babbling on about his beloved piggy. Dib had a look of victory on his face, and his eyes were keen on the door. Getting his unspoken message, she made sure she left the door open at the slightest fraction. Upon entering the house, she cringed. The rancid sent of rotting cabbages met her nose, and she lifted a hand to shield her face. It occurred to her that Zim did not have a nose, therefore it obviously did not bother him. She had always been a neat freak, and this became evident as she looked about the room around her. Dirt and grime polluted the entire room; dust covered every inch of the walls; cobwebs hung from the ceiling. Suppressing the urge to vomit, she sat down on the couch beside the SIR unit. He lifted the remote and clicked the television on, the Crazy Monkey show having started.  
  
"I love that monkey." Gir informed her with a childish tone. "I love me, too!" He wrapped his metallic arms around himself and beamed. Tera's eyes wandered from the robot to the door, which had given the slightest squeak. Desperate to distract Gir, she began to sing as loud as possible, "DOOM- DOOM-DOOM-DOOMIE-DOOM-DOOM-DOOMER-DOOMIE-DOOM-DOOM-" She screamed, so suddenly that she caused Gir to screech in shock. After a moment, he joined in, twice as loud as she. She cast another nervous look at Dib, who had entered the room on tiptoes. "DOOM! DOOMIE-DOOM-DOOM!" She nodded her head in the direction of the kitchen, her eyes wide. Dib gave her a smile and began to cross the room. Tera twitched and dove onto Gir, covering his eyes as Dib shot into the kitchen. "You're it!" She cried, shoving the robot under a couch pillow. She rolled off the couch and ran into the kitchen just as Dib spun down the oddly-placed toilet. This house was not built as others had been. Gir strode into the room behind her, walking as though in the German army.  
  
"I wanna chicken." Gir said with a thoughtful air, and he continued to walk as though in the German army to the fridge. He swung open the door, revealing several live chickens. Tera's brow scrunched up in a frown, her hands resting on her hips. She watched in amusement as Gir played with the chicken, poking it and then giggling as it flapped it's wing, the poor creature's feathers flying up in the air and then sinking to the tile floor. Upon running out of feathers, the chicken squawked and turned on Gir, giving him a lesson on how sharp a chicken's beak really is.  
  
"This is beyond weird." Tera said to no one in particular, shaking her head. Then came a sudden beep, some where in the vicinity of her pants pocket. She ran her fingers along the hem of the pocket, biting her bottom lip as she did so, a troubled expression on her face. She shoved her hand in her pocket and retrieved a small, round makeup compact. As it lay in her palm, the top flipped open, the face of a girl a little older than herself in the mirror rather than her reflection. A girl with short, blonde hair and a nasty scowl. Tera blanched. "Um.. Am I in trouble?" She asked softly, her voice a whine. "I didn't do anything yet!"  
  
"HQ has just received your audio of the past hour, Tera. They are not please with you revealing you real identity to Dib." Scolded the girl. "They do not think it is safe for you to go on with this mission alone, lest you let another valuable piece of information slip. We're dispatching Maria as of noon today."  
  
Tera let out a groan. "Not her! The last time you paired me up with her, she made me get up at five a.m. and do pushups! And all she ate was those stupid protein bars! Ick!" Shaking her head, she snapped the compact shut. Gir had now taken to beating the chicken with a frying pan. Tera exclaimed and took the frying pan from the SIR unit, despite his protests of, "I want fried eggs!"  
  
"Time to add yet another odd new girl to the class," The teacher hissed, now back in her seat behind her desk. "The other one disappeared with Dib. If you have any information as to those two's whereabouts, KEEP IT TO YOURSELF! Do not tell the police. Do not tell your mummy. Do not tell anyone. We have finally gotten rid of Dib!" This was met by screams of joy made by her class. The corner of Zim's eye twitched; a sign that he knew where they were. Hopefully in his dungeon, and not on the couch watching television with his servant, and certainly not tiptoeing around in his lab. Doin' stuff. Doing stuff, in his home? Never!  
  
"This, students, is Maria. She just magically appeared at the Skool doorstep and said she was here to NOT aid Dib in plotting Zim's downfall. So don't you suspect her of any such thing!"  
  
Maria looked ordinary enough. Her scarlet hair was long with a slight wave to it. Her large eyes were a sparkling green, and her mouth was drawn up in a smile. She wore a short-sleeved, plain white Tshirt, and light blue denim jeans. Her eyes surveyed the classroom, coming to rest on the short, green child's face. Zim. Her number one enemy. She smiled at him, though something stirred in her eyes. She made her way acrossed the room, having a seat at the desk farthest away from Zim.  
  
"Hmm," Droned the Irken invader to himself, "I think I may be able to use this new stink-human." He grinned sinisterly (which he was rather good at) as his mind went into overdrive as he concocted yet another plan. "Yes..."  
  
Dib could barely contain the cry of triumph that longed to be said. He was finally in Zim's laboratory! But he must not celebrate yet. First, he had to upload all of the files on Zim's main computer onto his own laptop. Not as east as it sounded. First, he had to put in the pass word in order to turn the computer on. He made his way past various structures; models of the Earth, old robots he had used for destruction, lab tables covered with weird science experiments, and a pile of stuffed pigs. The enormous keyboard stretched before him, foreign symbols printed on each one. The screen saver bounced around on the screen: green letters that spelled out "Zim is the ruler of earth! All bow down to ZIM!" Dib rolled his eyes. What an ego that alien had!  
  
"Ahh! Gir! No, PUT THAT DOWN! PUT IT DOWN!"  
  
It seemed that Tera was running into problems of her own. Dib would have to hurry so they could leave. He lifted his laptop from his bag and searched the computer for a place to plug in. Upon finding a small plug in, he unraveled the cord of his computer and plugged it in. "Now, a pass word," He told himself, his words hushed. There were fifty or so keys on Zim's computer, and according to the screen, which had just switched on, there were four letters in the pass word. That was about 200 combinations, not counting the fact that some letters could be repeated. So, in reality, there were countless possibilities. And Skool would be dismissed in three hours.  
  
"GIR! DON'T DO THAT! YOU'RE GOING TO HURT SOME ONE!"  
  
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